Blog of the Day Archives - Page 5 of 5 - The Blog on alanarnette.com

April 14, 2010May 27, 20162010 Coverage, Everest

Climbers: Ready, Set, Wait

The ladders are in. The ropes are fixed. The Sherpas have already gone up. Now it is time for the climbers to ascend to camp 1. But, as is sometimes the case, they were all dressed up with nowhere to go. Some teams made their foray into the Icefall with a short trip to the first ladders – no gear, just a walk-through. But others wanted to go all the way.

April 12, 2010May 28, 20162010 Coverage, Everest

Saving Lives at EBC

Right on schedule, the second week of April, camps 1 and 2 are already in. It was April 14th last year when the first teams reported these camps established, identical to 2007. During this time at base camp, teams are reviewing and brushing up on skills, including a few techniques many climbers have not experienced – walking across a ladder with crampons.

April 7, 20102010 Coverage, Everest

Leif Whittaker: Following His Father’s Footsteps

Leif Whittaker is walking in large footsteps. You see, his father, Jim Whittaker, was the first American to summit Everest. He and the nephew of Tenzing Norgay, Sherpa Nawang Gombu, summited on May 1, 1963. They ran out of oxygen but managed to reach the summit. Now Leif is on his Everest climb with the RMI team lead by Dave Hahn. Also, teams are well into Tibet and the south route is all the way to Camp 1 in the Western Cwm.

April 3, 2010April 6, 20192010 Coverage, Everest, Weekend Update

Everest 2010 Weekend Update April 4

This past week saw Everest 2010 come alive; and real for the climbers and families back home. Teams came and left Kathmandu as weather lifted enough for more flights to Lukla. Multiple dispatches spoke of uneventful landings at the dangerous airstrip and then the more peaceful start to the trek to base camp. But there was news that captured attention as well.

April 2, 2010May 28, 20162010 Coverage, Everest

Teams Through Namache Bazaar

Many teams are now passing through Namche Bazaar, the informal capital of the Khumbu. Teams spend three days there because it is about 12,500′ and some people begin to feel the altitude for the first time.

March 30, 2010May 28, 20162010 Coverage, Everest

The Migration to Base Camp Begins

After last week’s flight delays to Lukla, Yeti Airlines and others are running full loads this week. Multiple reports from teams speak of their uneventful flights to Lukla – which is a good thing! Lukla is generally ranked in the top three most dangerous airports in the world due to the short runway perched on a cliff. For the next few weeks, however, teams will be in Kathmandu and in the villages throughout the Khumbu.

March 25, 20102010 Coverage, Everest

And They’re Off!

Climbers continue to stream into Kathmandu from all around the world. I updated the expedition count and can already identify over 150 named climbers just on the south side and over 50 on the north. But the true number could easily exceed 350 on both sides. To put this in context, in 2009, we saw over 300 summits and sadly, 5 deaths and nearly 500 summits set a single season record in 2007.